Section III: Reflective Practice: Evaluating and Evolving Teaching Effectiveness
Insights, Growth, and Future Directions
Section I: Self-Reflection on Teaching Effectiveness
I participated in teaching MSSW 668, Program Evaluation in Social Work. The class was online and asynchronous. Based on student, mentor, and peer feedback, I assess my teaching effectiveness as competent and developing, with identifiable strengths alongside areas that warrant intentional growth. I demonstrated that I provide clear instructions and aim to engage learners where they are at by checking in with them directly. I could make improvements that would strengthen the clarity of my instruction and the depth of my concept explanation. There is room to strengthen the quality of my student interactions to foster safety, ownership of learning, and critical thinking.
Strengths
My teaching mentor, students, and doctoral colleague identified clear strengths in my teaching approach, including a learner-centered design, inclusivity, and adaptability. First, I built my lesson plan to meet the students where they are in their learning journey. Based on my teaching mentor's insight that the students tend not to be strong in Excel, I built my lesson plan to use by-hand calculations. I feel this demonstrated strong pedagogical judgement. Also, in line with adult learning theory, adults learn better by building on prior experience, so it made more sense to start simple. Second, I centered relational and inclusive facilitation. My doctoral colleague noted that the rapport-building question at the beginning of the session helped create a space for open dialogue with the students (A. Davis, personal communication, April 25, 2026). The students noted that the confidence check helped them relate to each other and feel connected. Student Mendez responded with the following when asked what went well in the synchronous session: “Connecting with other classmates and knowing I was not alone in having questions they also had" (T. Mendez, personal communication, March 31, 2026). Third, I used responsive instructional design. During the lesson, I asked students where we should go next and followed their lead on how to use the remaining time. Based on previous lesson designs by my teaching mentor, I also used a practice survey to demonstrate data collection and introduced equity considerations. Finally, I engaged in instructor development by creating a short post-session feedback survey in Blackboard.
Challenges
I also received feedback that informed my current areas of improvement, such as pacing, technology use, and use of virtual environment. First, I needed to slow down the pace of content review and discussion. I personally felt nervous, and that drove an impulse to fill the silence. I likely missed opportunities to clarify or go deeper on the concepts. My doctoral colleague provided additional feedback that I need to “provide space throughout the presentation, allowing students to engage in communication or ask questions in real time” (A. Davis, personal communication, April 25, 2026). Second, I chose to include an Excel demonstration and used screen recording software for the first time, and the idea was well received. Student Parson said, “The step-by-step process will be a helpful tool to guide our work when doing these formulas” (R. Parson, personal communication, March 31, 2026). Unfortunately, I received feedback that the screen and text were too small to see. A resource only increases accessibility if it can actually be used. Third, I need to grow more comfortable with online facilitation. My leadership skills in facilitating virtual meetings are different from those required for teaching online. I need to develop additional strategies to help students take control of their learning in the synchronous class environment.
Feedback Integration
As I move forward as an instructor, I will integrate the feedback in various ways to improve my teaching effectiveness. First, I will more intentionally build a facilitation roadmap for the discussion portions of class. I need to prepare more anchors for the discussion, such as questions, observations, additional content from the readings, etc., so I do not scramble to fill the silence. Second, I need to practice new technology before rolling it out. I can have colleagues test the products I create. Finally, I should build in a mid-session pulse check to help guide the rest of the lesson. Based on my teaching mentor information, the students would be more comfortable starting simple, but if they reported feeling confident by mid-session, I am not sure what I would have done as I did not design a second half of class that built on the concepts at a quicker pace. I should be able to pivot and offer deeper conceptual exploration when students are ready to go there, but that requires me to arrive prepared with additional layers of content, not just a single path through the material. When I tried to demonstrate Excel at the end of the session without planning, the result felt scattered, a reminder that responsive teaching still requires preparation.
Alignment with Social Work Values and Anti-Oppressive Pedagogy
My lesson planning, teaching process, classroom facilitation, and feedback loop aim to integrate social work values and anti-oppressive pedagogy at every level of my teaching. The lesson planning included many aspects of how social work conducts evaluations, such as noting who is left out of the demographic section, sharing information with all levels of stakeholders, and creating surveys. I hoped to frame data collection and analysis as a not-neutral action, rather one typically performed by White people and in the view of the dominant culture, their values and goals. I attempted to connect that concept to lived experience to demonstrate where obstacles exist in data analysis. I utilized a couple of trauma-informed strategies, such as confidence checks and normalizing confusion. Finally, I demonstrated social work ethical values, such as integrity, by soliciting feedback, showing that growth is a natural part of the process. The online environment puts strain on anti-oppressive techniques regarding how much relationships can be used and be a part of learning. The structural challenge requires more planning and intentional design to leverage the insights and experiences of everyone in the classroom.
Section II: Future Teaching Goals and Development Plan
A. Teaching Goals
I participated in teaching MSSW 668, Program Evaluation in Social Work. The class was online and asynchronous. Based on student, mentor, and peer feedback, I assess my teaching effectiveness as competent and developing, with identifiable strengths alongside areas that warrant intentional growth. I demonstrated that I provide clear instructions and aim to engage learners where they are at by checking in with them directly. I could make improvements that would strengthen the clarity of my instruction and the depth of my concept explanation. There is room to strengthen the quality of my student interactions to foster safety, ownership of learning, and critical thinking.
Strengths
My teaching mentor, students, and doctoral colleague identified clear strengths in my teaching approach, including a learner-centered design, inclusivity, and adaptability. First, I built my lesson plan to meet the students where they are in their learning journey. Based on my teaching mentor's insight that the students tend not to be strong in Excel, I built my lesson plan to use by-hand calculations. I feel this demonstrated strong pedagogical judgement. Also, in line with adult learning theory, adults learn better by building on prior experience, so it made more sense to start simple. Second, I centered relational and inclusive facilitation. My doctoral colleague noted that the rapport-building question at the beginning of the session helped create a space for open dialogue with the students (A. Davis, personal communication, April 25, 2026). The students noted that the confidence check helped them relate to each other and feel connected. Student Mendez responded with the following when asked what went well in the synchronous session: “Connecting with other classmates and knowing I was not alone in having questions they also had" (T. Mendez, personal communication, March 31, 2026). Third, I used responsive instructional design. During the lesson, I asked students where we should go next and followed their lead on how to use the remaining time. Based on previous lesson designs by my teaching mentor, I also used a practice survey to demonstrate data collection and introduced equity considerations. Finally, I engaged in instructor development by creating a short post-session feedback survey in Blackboard.
Challenges
I also received feedback that informed my current areas of improvement, such as pacing, technology use, and use of virtual environment. First, I needed to slow down the pace of content review and discussion. I personally felt nervous, and that drove an impulse to fill the silence. I likely missed opportunities to clarify or go deeper on the concepts. My doctoral colleague provided additional feedback that I need to “provide space throughout the presentation, allowing students to engage in communication or ask questions in real time” (A. Davis, personal communication, April 25, 2026). Second, I chose to include an Excel demonstration and used screen recording software for the first time, and the idea was well received. Student Parson said, “The step-by-step process will be a helpful tool to guide our work when doing these formulas” (R. Parson, personal communication, March 31, 2026). Unfortunately, I received feedback that the screen and text were too small to see. A resource only increases accessibility if it can actually be used. Third, I need to grow more comfortable with online facilitation. My leadership skills in facilitating virtual meetings are different from those required for teaching online. I need to develop additional strategies to help students take control of their learning in the synchronous class environment.
Feedback Integration
As I move forward as an instructor, I will integrate the feedback in various ways to improve my teaching effectiveness. First, I will more intentionally build a facilitation roadmap for the discussion portions of class. I need to prepare more anchors for the discussion, such as questions, observations, additional content from the readings, etc., so I do not scramble to fill the silence. Second, I need to practice new technology before rolling it out. I can have colleagues test the products I create. Finally, I should build in a mid-session pulse check to help guide the rest of the lesson. Based on my teaching mentor information, the students would be more comfortable starting simple, but if they reported feeling confident by mid-session, I am not sure what I would have done as I did not design a second half of class that built on the concepts at a quicker pace. I should be able to pivot and offer deeper conceptual exploration when students are ready to go there, but that requires me to arrive prepared with additional layers of content, not just a single path through the material. When I tried to demonstrate Excel at the end of the session without planning, the result felt scattered, a reminder that responsive teaching still requires preparation.
Alignment with Social Work Values and Anti-Oppressive Pedagogy
My lesson planning, teaching process, classroom facilitation, and feedback loop aim to integrate social work values and anti-oppressive pedagogy at every level of my teaching. The lesson planning included many aspects of how social work conducts evaluations, such as noting who is left out of the demographic section, sharing information with all levels of stakeholders, and creating surveys. I hoped to frame data collection and analysis as a not-neutral action, rather one typically performed by White people and in the view of the dominant culture, their values and goals. I attempted to connect that concept to lived experience to demonstrate where obstacles exist in data analysis. I utilized a couple of trauma-informed strategies, such as confidence checks and normalizing confusion. Finally, I demonstrated social work ethical values, such as integrity, by soliciting feedback, showing that growth is a natural part of the process. The online environment puts strain on anti-oppressive techniques regarding how much relationships can be used and be a part of learning. The structural challenge requires more planning and intentional design to leverage the insights and experiences of everyone in the classroom.
Section II: Future Teaching Goals and Development Plan
A. Teaching Goals
B. Professional Development Experience
I attended a couple of sessions at the University of Louisville 2026 Celebration of Teaching & Learning Conference. The first session was titled “The Case of the Missing Detective: When AI Skips to the End,” by Dr. Andrea Olinger and Cecilia Durbin. It occurred on Monday February 2, 2026, from 8:30 am - 8:45 am EST and was a pre-recorded podcast. I chose a session on AI because I still have a lot to learn about its use in the classroom. I experimented with AI tools in the synchronous session I designed by having Claude build a student survey. I am aware of both the utility and the limitations of these tools, and I am curious about how others are navigating that tension. I am most interested in what faculty are seeing and experiencing firsthand and what approaches they are finding effective for keeping students on track toward their learning goals. One key takeaway from the AI podcast session was how to construct an assignment to center the process, not the outcome. Our goal in the classroom is to encourage critical thinking and help students incorporate concepts into their lived experience to make meaning out of the current information. Structuring assignments that ask the students to show their process removes a common use of AI, simply getting the end result or outcome.
The second session I attended was titled “Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms Using Polyvagal Theory and Psychological Safety,” by William Brantley. It was a live virtual session on Thursday February 5, 2026, from 11:00 am - 11:50 am EST. I chose a session on student engagement in the classroom based on my self-assessment and my own personal teaching philosophy. Creating a trauma-informed classroom supports students’ engagement with challenging material. One key takeaway was the instructor's balance and consistency across all aspects of the course. You build psychological safety when you show up consistently, whether in your communication with students or in the structure of the course itself.
Social work inherently asks us to experience and tolerate unacceptable things for a period of time in the hope that we can work with the person or the system to create an improvement. Finding ways to create psychological safety to help everyone stay engaged as we tackle and attempt to fix the harmful parts of our world is essential. Particularly as a White social worker, I am committed to constantly learning about how we can create safe spaces for people. In terms of AI, because I will not be teaching in the immediate future, I have time to see how AI and education develop over the next couple of years. We will always have to find ways to push students’ critical thinking in the context of learning and growth. Generative AI has changed the landscape, and it remains to be seen what we learn about this early era of its use.
C. Teaching Development Plan
I plan to engage in a variety of activities to support my development and growth as an instructor. I won’t be pursuing teaching directly after this degree program. I will keep the textbooks and reference materials for future use. I will review the materials before applying for or accepting a teaching position, knowing that the materials offer so much information that will help me be an effective and impactful instructor. Depending on the length of time, I might pursue other teaching education opportunities to “brush up” and connect with current trends, strategies, and approaches. I will ask established experts to review my syllabus and offer recommendations or changes, specifically asking them to consider it from an equity and inclusion framework. If I do take a role as an adjunct, I will also seek mentorship and support for the duration of the course. I found having a teaching mentor to be a very helpful part of the practicum experience. Finally, I plan to continue to apply adult learning theory in my current role as a program manager. I am actively seeking ways to increase engagement and understanding among the staff. Concurrently, when leadership introduces new or innovative ideas, I am applying adult learning theory in real time, asking how staff can build on what they already know and ensuring the tools we develop are accessible to everyone.
Beyond the professional development I participated in this semester by attending a couple of sessions of the education conference, I plan to seek out further enrichment opportunities. I will research which professional groups exist in the Bay Area that include social work education and inquire about participation and resources they offer for those in practice. I appreciated seeing how much content is available in the podcast world around teaching and AI and want to explore those resources further.
My long-term professional goals are open to amendments. I truly appreciated being challenged and learning more about teaching this semester. I always knew teaching as an adjunct was an option, but I am going to consider it more seriously now that I have some approaches and techniques under my belt. I am excited to try to bridge the classroom and the workplace, whether that means including social work students in our program or finding another avenue for mentorship.
I attended a couple of sessions at the University of Louisville 2026 Celebration of Teaching & Learning Conference. The first session was titled “The Case of the Missing Detective: When AI Skips to the End,” by Dr. Andrea Olinger and Cecilia Durbin. It occurred on Monday February 2, 2026, from 8:30 am - 8:45 am EST and was a pre-recorded podcast. I chose a session on AI because I still have a lot to learn about its use in the classroom. I experimented with AI tools in the synchronous session I designed by having Claude build a student survey. I am aware of both the utility and the limitations of these tools, and I am curious about how others are navigating that tension. I am most interested in what faculty are seeing and experiencing firsthand and what approaches they are finding effective for keeping students on track toward their learning goals. One key takeaway from the AI podcast session was how to construct an assignment to center the process, not the outcome. Our goal in the classroom is to encourage critical thinking and help students incorporate concepts into their lived experience to make meaning out of the current information. Structuring assignments that ask the students to show their process removes a common use of AI, simply getting the end result or outcome.
The second session I attended was titled “Creating Trauma-Informed Classrooms Using Polyvagal Theory and Psychological Safety,” by William Brantley. It was a live virtual session on Thursday February 5, 2026, from 11:00 am - 11:50 am EST. I chose a session on student engagement in the classroom based on my self-assessment and my own personal teaching philosophy. Creating a trauma-informed classroom supports students’ engagement with challenging material. One key takeaway was the instructor's balance and consistency across all aspects of the course. You build psychological safety when you show up consistently, whether in your communication with students or in the structure of the course itself.
Social work inherently asks us to experience and tolerate unacceptable things for a period of time in the hope that we can work with the person or the system to create an improvement. Finding ways to create psychological safety to help everyone stay engaged as we tackle and attempt to fix the harmful parts of our world is essential. Particularly as a White social worker, I am committed to constantly learning about how we can create safe spaces for people. In terms of AI, because I will not be teaching in the immediate future, I have time to see how AI and education develop over the next couple of years. We will always have to find ways to push students’ critical thinking in the context of learning and growth. Generative AI has changed the landscape, and it remains to be seen what we learn about this early era of its use.
C. Teaching Development Plan
I plan to engage in a variety of activities to support my development and growth as an instructor. I won’t be pursuing teaching directly after this degree program. I will keep the textbooks and reference materials for future use. I will review the materials before applying for or accepting a teaching position, knowing that the materials offer so much information that will help me be an effective and impactful instructor. Depending on the length of time, I might pursue other teaching education opportunities to “brush up” and connect with current trends, strategies, and approaches. I will ask established experts to review my syllabus and offer recommendations or changes, specifically asking them to consider it from an equity and inclusion framework. If I do take a role as an adjunct, I will also seek mentorship and support for the duration of the course. I found having a teaching mentor to be a very helpful part of the practicum experience. Finally, I plan to continue to apply adult learning theory in my current role as a program manager. I am actively seeking ways to increase engagement and understanding among the staff. Concurrently, when leadership introduces new or innovative ideas, I am applying adult learning theory in real time, asking how staff can build on what they already know and ensuring the tools we develop are accessible to everyone.
Beyond the professional development I participated in this semester by attending a couple of sessions of the education conference, I plan to seek out further enrichment opportunities. I will research which professional groups exist in the Bay Area that include social work education and inquire about participation and resources they offer for those in practice. I appreciated seeing how much content is available in the podcast world around teaching and AI and want to explore those resources further.
My long-term professional goals are open to amendments. I truly appreciated being challenged and learning more about teaching this semester. I always knew teaching as an adjunct was an option, but I am going to consider it more seriously now that I have some approaches and techniques under my belt. I am excited to try to bridge the classroom and the workplace, whether that means including social work students in our program or finding another avenue for mentorship.
Professional Development
Professional development is key for social work. I attended a couple of sessions at the 2026 Celebration of Teaching & Learning Conference hosted by University of Louisville. The two sessions focused on AI use in education and trauma-informed classrooms using polyvagal theory.
Student Evaluations from Teaching Practicum
Mentor Evaluations from Teaching Practicum
